08/29/2008 - St. Petersburg, FL (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - The Toronto Blue Jays designated Matt Stairs for assignment following Thursday's 3-2 loss to the Tampa Bay Rays and are expected to trade the designated hitter within the next two days.
The Blue Jays were mum on which club was attempting the acquire the services of the 40-year-old, saying only that a deal is in the works.
Stairs, who inked a two-year contract extension worth $3.25 million last November, batted .250 with 11 home runs and 44 RBI in 105 games this season for Toronto. He is scheduled to make $1 million in 2009.
In a related move, the club purchased the contract of outfielder Travis Snider from Triple-A Syracuse. The 14th overall pick in the 2006 first-year player draft, Snider, 20, hit .274 with 23 homers and 91 RBI in 133 games in stints with Class-A Dunedin, Double-A New Hampshire and Syracuse this season.
<< Chiefs edge Rams
Kansas City, MO (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Kolby Smith ran six times for 38 yards and
two touchdowns to lead the Kansas City Chiefs over St. Louis, 21-17, in the
teams' final preseason game.
Brodie Croyle completed three of four passing atte
<< Skinner throws three TD passes to lead Wake Forest in rout of Baylor
Waco, TX (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Riley Skinner went 27-of-36 passing for 220 yards
and three touchdowns to lead 23rd-ranked Wake Forest in a 41-13 romp over
Baylor in the season opener for both schools.
Ben Wooster caught six passes for 9
<< Ramirez keeps Cubs rolling with late-inning slam against Phils
Chicago, IL (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Aramis Ramirez hit a go-ahead grand slam as
part of a five-run eighth inning, as the Chicago Cubs shocked the Philadelphia
Phillies with a 6-4 comeback win in the opener of a four-game set from Wrigley
Field.
<< Bears rally to get the best of Browns in preseason finale
Cleveland, OH (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Caleb Hanie totaled 115 yards on 12-of-17
passing but was intercepted once, and Rex Grossman connected on 5-of-7 passes
for 59 yards and a score, as the Chicago Bears edged the Cleveland Browns,
16-10,
A's edge Twins in ninth >>
Oakland, CA (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Kurt Suzuki had a pinch-hit, game-winning
double in the ninth to lead the Oakland Athletics in a 3-2 victory over the
Minnesota Twins in the opener of a four-game set.
With the contest knotted at 2-2
Choice, Cowboys beat Vikings >>
Irving, TX (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Tashard Choice helped his chances of securing a
roster spot by scoring a touchdown to lead the Dallas Cowboys over the
Minnesota Vikings, 16-10, in the preseason finale for both teams at Texas
Stadium
Titans edge Pack in preseason finale >>
Green Bay, WI (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Matt Flynn's two-point conversion pass as
time expired fell incomplete, and the Tennessee Titans held on to top the
Green Bay Packers, 23-21 in each club's final preseason tuneup before the
regular
Tressel gets raise from Ohio State >>
Columbus, OH (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Ohio State football coach Jim Tressel has
agreed to contract revisions that will make him the highest-paid football
coach in the Big Ten Conference.
Under the amended deal, Tressel's raise will be
MySportsbook.com: New College Football Clock Rules Examined
Coaches and bettors alike are desperate to make sense of the new time-keeping rules on the NCAA gridiron. One of the big stories to come out of the Ohio State-Texas clash last weekend was Texas coach Mack Brown's criticism of the NCAA's new clock rules that are intended to shorten the duration of college football games, therefore affecting college football betting.
"They scored with six minutes left and the game was over before we had a chance to do anything," Brown told ESPN.com. "I really hope whoever made these changes will go back and look them over."
Sure, it might be sour grapes; the Buckeyes thoroughly trounced the defending national champion Longhorns 24-7. However, Brown isn't alone in giving the changes their due thought. Bettors are also wondering about them, albeit for a completely different reason. Most experts agree that the changes will result in games being shortened by anywhere from 10 to 20 plays. The obvious consequence is lower scores, with more time rolling off the clock during changes of possession. (The Ohio State-Texas game flew well under the total of 52.)
According to research at the online sportsbook MySportsbook.com, more than 18 plays a game disappeared last weekend into thin air. That's a 10-percent reduction. In 2005, a typical game had 168.58 plays. For 2007 already, it's down to 150.26.
As a result, teams combined to gain an average of about 100 fewer yards a game last weekend versus the 2005 openers. Scoring was also down by about 4.5 points (attention Las Vegas sports lines).
Of course, oddsmakers were able to adjust to the changes before the season started. Proof of that came as the over went a balanced 8-9 at My Sportsbook on Saturday.
Other angles to consider:A shorter game should theoretically result in shorter lines. Whereas Team A might have been a 14-point favorite in a 168-play game (last year), if there are 10 percent less snaps in 2007, the line should also be reduced by 10 percent (to 13 or 12.5). Of course, this is an over-simplification of the matter, but something to keep in mind.
Less possessions means a better chance the game will be decided by three or seven points. For example, what might have been a 20-10 final score in 2005 may end at
17-10 in 2007. Granted, a 24-17 game last year might end at 21-17 these days, but the former - a three- or seven-point advantage being preserved as opposed to created - is the most likely scenario.
*UPDATE* - Sept. 25, 2007
New Clock Rules Boon for online bookmakers
By adjusting the time-keeping rules to shorten the duration of college football games, the NCAA hoped to make its product more enjoyable for the fans. While the NCAA's success in this regard is still up for debate, bookmakers couldn't be happier with the results.
"We are seeing a massive jump in college football betting," noted the MySportsbook.com management team. "With all the early Saturday games (12 a.m. ET) ending before the second wave begins (3:30 p.m. ET) - something that didn't always happen before the changes - bettors are now able to re-invest their winnings from the morning session in the afternoon games."
While not all bettors will choose to roll over their winnings, it doesn't take much for an impact to be seen on the bottom line. "Not all of the millions of dollars in morning payouts get re-bet. In fact, it's probably only 10 to 20 percent," noted the sportsbook management team. "Still, the increased football betting lines window will create a ton of growth for us over the course of the season."
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